AUA '17 puts emphasis squarely on 'value'

New era of value-based care permeates policy, clinical presentations

Cost. Quality. Value. These terms are not new to urologists, but at this year’s AUA annual meeting in Boston, the degree that these buzzwords permeate the meeting program is unprecedented.

Of course, the emphasis on value-based care is no accident. It is what drives physician reimbursement under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), which rewards providers for better value through the Quality Payment Program. (Also see, “MACRA: A practical perspective for urologists")

“In contrast to years past, when there was an effort to divide cost and quality of care issues from the science of urology, this year’s meeting emphasizes many aspects of health policy impact across all elements of urologic care delivery and across all formats of the program: plenary sessions, moderated posters, instructional courses, and specific forums,” said Jeffrey E. Kaufman, MD, a urologist in private practice in Orange County, CA. “It’s a reflection of how important considerations of value, cost, and quality have become that they’re integrated into everything we do.”

Dr. Kaufman and other members of the Urology Times editorial advisory board weighed in on the themes and specific sessions that annual meeting attendees should watch for across a variety of health policy and clinical topics. Their insights follow.

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